This relates generally to imaging devices, and more particularly, to imaging devices with multiple lenses and image sensors.
Image sensors are commonly used in electronic devices such as cellular telephones, cameras, and computers to capture images. In a typical arrangement, an electronic device is provided with a single image sensor and a single corresponding lens. Some electronic devices use arrays of image sensors and corresponding lenses to gather image data. This type of system, which is sometimes referred to as an array camera, may be used to extend depth of focus, increase output resolution through super-resolution processing, and capture depth information from a scene. Array cameras may also be used to improve image processing and information gathering processes such as gesture control, image segmentation or other image processing operations.
In a conventional array camera, image sensors associated with red, green, and blue color filters are used along with corresponding lenses having equal sized apertures. Array cameras having red, green and blue color image sensors with equal sized apertures have certain depth of focus that is determined by the aperture size. Reducing the aperture size increases the range of depth of focus. However, reducing all aperture sizes may have undesired consequences such as reduced sensitivity and reduced signal to noise ratio.
It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide improved imaging devices with array cameras with multiple aperture sizes.